User eye-gaze based derivation of activity stream processing augmentations

ABSTRACT

A content subject matter area of interest to a user is determined, using eye-gaze analysis of a user viewing existing activity stream content, according to content at a content location viewed by the user within the existing activity stream content. User-specific activity stream content augmentations are configured that are applicable to new activity stream content viewed by the user that includes the content subject matter area of interest to the user determined from the eye-gaze analysis. Using the configured user-specific activity stream content augmentations, portions of the new activity stream content viewed by the user determined to include the content subject matter area of interest to the user are augmented.

BACKGROUND

The present invention relates to activity stream processing. Moreparticularly, the present invention relates to user eye-gaze basedderivation of activity stream processing augmentations.

Social network users may interact with one another using theirrespective communication devices within an online social networkplatform. The online social network platform provides access to content(e.g., postings) published by other social network users, and mayadditionally include other forms of content published within the onlinesocial network platform.

SUMMARY

A method includes determining, using eye-gaze analysis of a user viewingexisting activity stream content, a content subject matter area ofinterest to the user according to content at a content location viewedby the user within the existing activity stream content; configuringuser-specific activity stream content augmentations applicable to newactivity stream content viewed by the user that comprises the contentsubject matter area of interest to the user determined from the eye-gazeanalysis; and augmenting, using the configured user-specific activitystream content augmentations, portions of the new activity streamcontent viewed by the user determined to comprise the content subjectmatter area of interest to the user.

A system that performs the method and a computer program product thatcauses a computer to perform the method are also described.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of an example of an implementation of a systemfor user eye-gaze based derivation of activity stream processingaugmentations according to an embodiment of the present subject matter;

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of an example of an implementation of a coreprocessing module capable of performing user eye-gaze based derivationof activity stream processing augmentations according to an embodimentof the present subject matter; and

FIG. 3 is a flow chart of an example of an implementation of a processfor user eye-gaze based derivation of activity stream processingaugmentations according to an embodiment of the present subject matter;

FIG. 4 is a flow chart of an example of an implementation of a processfor user eye-gaze based derivation of activity stream processingaugmentations that creates and applies a user-specific eye-gaze derivedinterest model according to an embodiment of the present subject matter.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The examples set forth below represent the necessary information toenable those skilled in the art to practice the invention and illustratethe best mode of practicing the invention. Upon reading the followingdescription in light of the accompanying drawing figures, those skilledin the art will understand the concepts of the invention and willrecognize applications of these concepts not particularly addressedherein. It should be understood that these concepts and applicationsfall within the scope of the disclosure and the accompanying claims.

The subject matter described herein provides user eye-gaze basedderivation of activity stream processing augmentations. The technologydescribed herein solves a recognized information consumption problem byproviding technology that includes a new form of computationalprocessing within complex social network computing environments. Tomanage increasing quantities of activity streams and social networks,and the increasing quantities of published information associated withthese activity streams, the technology described herein programmaticallylearns/derives a user's reading interest by use of eye focus/gazedetection technology and programmatically augments processing ofactivity stream content to create an individualized activity streamreading experience for the respective social network users that istailored to the user's historical activity stream reading activities(e.g., derived topics of interest, derived durations of readingparticular aspects of activity streams, etc.). By use of the technologydescribed herein, each social network user may be provided with a uniquereading experience for one or more activity streams based upon their ownreading tendencies and interests as learned/derived from theirhistorical activity stream reading activities. New activity streams maybe processed using the derived activity stream processing augmentations.Additional activity stream processing augmentations may be derived byfurther processing of the user's eye focus/gaze durations while viewingaugmented activity streams.

The term “activity stream” as utilized herein represents a sequence ofinformation/postings published by another social network user, a newsfeed published by a news source, and other forms sequential contentpostings published by individuals or entities within a social network.As such, an activity stream is considered to originate from a sourcethat publishes information within a social network.

The technology described herein operates by determining, using eye-gazeanalysis of a user viewing existing activity stream content, a contentsubject matter area of interest to the user according to content withinthe existing activity stream at a content location viewed by the user.User-specific activity stream content augmentations applicable to newactivity stream content viewed by the user are configured that includethe content subject matter area of interest to the user determined fromthe eye-gaze analysis. Portions of the new activity stream contentviewed by the user determined to include the subject matter area ofinterest to the user are augmented using the configured user-specificactivity stream content augmentations. As such, the user's attention maybe programmatically focused on areas of new activity streams that aredetermined to be of interest to the user.

The present subject matter provides an enhanced attention managementtechnology that displays messages to the user that are augmented with asecond data set based upon eye-gaze derived interest(s). Utilizing eyetracking technologies, the type of information in which the user mayshow interest may be pinpointed. These interests may be recorded andused to selectively recommend or prioritize other data as it becomesavailable within an activity stream of one or more social networkingwebsites.

The following are detailed processing steps that may be implemented toperform the technology described herein. As a social network userbrowses a social networking website, an eye tracking device monitors theuser's eye movements and determines by comparison with content renderedon a display the information that the user spends time viewing. Thetechnology collects the information the user reads in the socialnetworking websites along with the amount of time the user spendsreading the information. These items of information about what and howlong the user views certain content are recorded to document where(e.g., what types of content) the user spends the most amount of timereading. Processing may then be performed to analyze the informationcontent to determine terms that appear with higher-frequencies withinthe content. Based on the data collected from the eye-gaze analysistechniques, a user-specific eye-gaze derived interest model may beconstructed that documents/remembers what types of information may be ofinterest to the user (e.g., the most frequently occurring types orcategories of information). Pre-defined thresholds may be configured tocreate filters that may be used to display augmented information inassociation with future content viewing sessions within one or moresocial networking websites.

For example, if the user has spent more than five (5) minutes viewinginformation related to cloud computing technology, then a new filter maybe created for the term “cloud computing.” With such an eye-gaze derivedinterest model, the social networking websites may display filteredinformation using a special font or using visual cues when new data thatappears within an activity stream contains the string “cloud computing”.For example, the filtered data may be displayed in an increased fontsize, in a bold font, in a different font, in an italicized font, in adifferent font color, with highlighting, with reverse highlighting, withunderlining, or with other content augmentations to attract the user'sattention.

The filtered data may further be prioritized/emphasized relative toother content within an activity stream, and the other content that doesnot satisfy a configured filter may be deprioritized/de-emphasized.Prioritization/emphasis may be performed by relocating content within awebpage/document to place the filtered data higher and/or more centrallylocated within the webpage/document relative to the other content of theactivity stream.

As such, the eye-gaze derived interest model may be constructed toremember the user's individualized interests. The eye-gaze derivedinterest model may be applied to new activity stream posts to improveefficiency of activity stream processing. As the respective user forwhich the eye-gaze derived interest model has been created reviewsactivity streams, the user's eye-gaze derived interest model may beupdated over time to iteratively refine and further improve efficiencyof filter-based processing of activity streams.

This form of augmentation of activity stream content may further assistusers to review multiple activity streams more efficiently because theymay be guided through the content in a manner that is specificallytailored to their personal interests. As such, the technology describedherein may be considered a personalized activity stream contentaugmentation technology that individualizes content augmentations basedupon known interests of the user derived from eye-gaze analysis ofcontent viewed by the user, as described above and in more detail below.

The augmentation of content during subsequent viewings session basedupon user eye-gaze based derivation of user interests may includegeneration of alternate text. Alternate text may include suggestions forrelevant products, relevant movies, relevant books, and other forms ofalternative text that may be both of interest to the user and related towhat the user is contemporaneously viewing. As such, the technologydescribed herein creates a link between what a user is interested in asderived from eye-gaze analysis and what a user is contemporaneouslyviewing during other browsing sessions.

Using filtering, as described above, the augmentation of content duringsubsequent viewings session based upon user eye-gaze based derivation ofuser interests may further include emphasizing portions of content thatare known to be of interest to the user (e.g., text highlights,underlining, larger fonts, and other text augmentations). Further,portions of content that are determined to be uncorrelated with theuser's known interests may be omitted from lengthy or otherwiseunrelated activity streams to allow the user to focus on portions ofcontent the user may otherwise miss where relevant information isobscured within lengthy passages of activity streams.

It should be noted that many forms of augmentation of activity streamcontent are possible based upon the technology described herein. Assuch, any such possible forms of augmentation of activity stream contentare considered to be within the scope of the present subject matter.

For example, while the description herein utilizes activity streams forpurposes of example, the present subject matter is not limited toactivity streams and social media posts, but may additionally beextended to include recommendation engines that provide suggestions,such as books, movies, and product recommendations, as introduced above.These recommendation engines may pinpoint/derive which terms, features,or keywords are of interest to the user through monitoring of userproduct searches using eye-gaze analysis, how the user reads the productdetails, and which related products they spend more time viewing. Assuch, the present technology may be utilized within a variety ofplatforms, as appropriate for any given implementation.

It should be noted that conception of the present subject matterresulted from recognition of certain limitations associated withactivity stream processing within social networks. For example, it wasobserved that social networks are increasing in popularity and number.Users may use social network websites to communicate and may furtherobtain information about other social network users, events, and news inan increasingly pervasive manner over time by use of activity feeds.However, it was further observed that for any given user, the volume ofthe activity feeds received from a social network may becomeoverwhelming, and as a result the users may be unable to identify andcapture important information within the activity streams. It wasdetermined from these observations that a new attention managementsystem capable of determining what portion(s) of posts, articles,emails, and other content is of interest/importance to the respectiveuser would improve processing of the increasing amount of data generatedby activity feeds. It was further determined that processing thatdetects and analyzes a user's gaze and reading duration of differentsections of content/media may improve automated analysis of the user'sreading interests, and that the new attention management system mayleverage information about past user reading interests derived from gazerecognition to implement activity stream processing augmentations tohelp focus the user on information within new activity stream contentthat has been determined from past gaze/post analysis to be of interestto the user. As such, a user may be guided in an efficient mannerthrough large amounts of content associated with multiple activitystreams to information that is of interest to the respective user. Thepresent subject matter improves activity stream processing by providingactivity stream processing augmentations derived from user eye-gazebased analysis, as described above and in more detail below. As such,improved activity stream processing may be obtained through use of thepresent technology.

The user eye-gaze based derivation of activity stream processingaugmentations described herein may be performed in real time to allowprompt determinations of appropriate augmentations to activity streamprocessing for individual users. For purposes of the presentdescription, real time shall include any time frame of sufficientlyshort duration as to provide reasonable response time for informationprocessing acceptable to a user of the subject matter described.Additionally, the term “real time” shall include what is commonly termed“near real time”—generally meaning any time frame of sufficiently shortduration as to provide reasonable response time for on-demandinformation processing acceptable to a user of the subject matterdescribed (e.g., within a portion of a second or within a few seconds).These terms, while difficult to precisely define are well understood bythose skilled in the art.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of an example of an implementation of a system100 for user eye-gaze based derivation of activity stream processingaugmentations. A computing device_1 102 through a computing device_N 104communicate via a network 106 with several other devices. The otherdevices include a server_1 108 through a server_M 110, and a database112. The database 112 may be accessed by any of the respective computingdevices as appropriate for a given implementation, and may be used tostore content associated with activity streams published by one or moredifferent entities within one or more social networks.

As will be described in more detail below in association with FIG. 2through FIG. 4, the computing device_1 102 through the computingdevice_N 104 and the server_1 108 through the server_M 110 may eachprovide automated user eye-gaze based derivation of activity streamprocessing augmentations. The automated user eye-gaze based derivationof activity stream processing augmentations is based upon derivation ofuser interests in accordance with eye-tracking and content analysis inconjunction with amounts of time invested by users in reading/viewingcontent associated with activity streams. It should be noted that thepresent technology may be implemented at a user computing device orserver device level, or by a combination of such devices as appropriatefor a given implementation. A variety of possibilities exist forimplementation of the present subject matter, and all such possibilitiesare considered within the scope of the present subject matter.

The network 106 may include any form of interconnection suitable for theintended purpose, including a private or public network such as anintranet or the Internet, respectively, direct inter-moduleinterconnection, dial-up, wireless, or any other interconnectionmechanism capable of interconnecting the respective devices.

The server_1 108 through the server_M 110 may include any device capableof providing data for consumption by a device, such as the computingdevice_1 102 through the computing device_N 104, via a network, such asthe network 106. As such, the server_1 108 through the server_M 110 mayeach include a social networking server, a web server, an applicationserver, or other data server device.

The database 112 may include a relational database, an object database,or any other storage type of device. As such, the database 112 may beimplemented as appropriate for a given implementation.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of an example of an implementation of a coreprocessing module 200 capable of performing user eye-gaze basedderivation of activity stream processing augmentations. The coreprocessing module 200 may be associated with the computing device_1 102through the computing device_N 104 to identify user-specific contentaugmentation filters based upon user eye-gaze detection while a user isviewing an activity stream, and to apply those filters to new activitystream content as new posts are published to activity streams.Additionally and/or alternatively, the core processing module 200 may beassociated with the server_1 108 through the server_M 110, asappropriate for a given implementation. As such, the core processingmodule 200 is described generally herein, though it is understood thatmany variations on implementation of the components within the coreprocessing module 200 are possible and all such variations are withinthe scope of the present subject matter. Further, the core processingmodule 200 may be implemented as an embedded processing device withcircuitry designed specifically to perform the processing describedherein as appropriate for a given implementation.

Further, the core processing module 200 may provide different andcomplementary processing of eye-gaze based derived activity streamprocessing augmentations in association with each implementation. Assuch, for any of the examples below, it is understood that any aspect offunctionality described with respect to any one device that is describedin conjunction with another device (e.g., sends/sending, etc.) is to beunderstood to concurrently describe the functionality of the otherrespective device (e.g., receives/receiving, etc.).

A central processing unit (CPU) 202 (“processor”) provides hardware thatperforms computer instruction execution, computation, and othercapabilities within the core processing module 200. A display 204provides visual information to a user of the core processing module 200and an input device 206 provides input capabilities for the user.

The display 204 may include any display device, such as a cathode raytube (CRT), liquid crystal display (LCD), light emitting diode (LED),electronic ink displays, projection, touchscreen, or other displayelement or panel. The input device 206 may include a computer keyboard,a keypad, a mouse, a pen, a joystick, a touchscreen, a voice commandprocessing unit, or any other type of input device by which the user mayinteract with and respond to information on the display 204.

A communication module 208 provides hardware, protocol stack processing,and interconnection capabilities that allow the core processing module200 to communicate with other modules within the system 100. Thecommunication module 208 may include any electrical, protocol, andprotocol conversion capabilities useable to provide interconnectioncapabilities, as appropriate for a given implementation. As such, thecommunication module 208 represents a communication device capable ofcarrying out communications with other devices.

A memory 210 includes an eye-gaze analysis area 212 that stores eye-gazeprocessing information within the core processing module 200. The memory210 also includes a derived user interest model area 214 that providesconfiguration and storage space for user-specific eye-gaze derivedinterest models.

It is understood that the memory 210 may include any combination ofvolatile and non-volatile memory suitable for the intended purpose,distributed or localized as appropriate, and may include other memorysegments not illustrated within the present example for ease ofillustration purposes. For example, the memory 210 may include a codestorage area, an operating system storage area, a code execution area,and a data area without departure from the scope of the present subjectmatter.

An eye-gaze based user interest derivation module 216 is alsoillustrated. The eye-gaze based user interest derivation module 216provides analytical processing capabilities associated with usereye-gaze analysis for the core processing module 200, as described aboveand in more detail below. The eye-gaze based user interest derivationmodule 216 implements the automated user eye-gaze based derivation ofactivity stream processing augmentations of the core processing module200.

It should also be noted that the eye-gaze based user interest derivationmodule 216 may form a portion of other circuitry described withoutdeparture from the scope of the present subject matter. The eye-gazebased user interest derivation module 216 may form a portion of aninterrupt service routine (ISR), a portion of an operating system, or aportion of an application without departure from the scope of thepresent subject matter. The eye-gaze based user interest derivationmodule 216 may also include an embedded device with circuitry designedspecifically to perform the processing described herein as appropriatefor a given implementation.

An eye-gaze detection module 218 is illustrated and used to detect usereye movement relative to a surface of a display, such as the display204. The eye-gaze detection module 218 may utilize any technologyappropriate for detection of eye movements and gaze, such as use of acamera (not separately illustrated) to perform retina image recognitionand image-based motion detection of a user's retina, and/or othertechnology as appropriate for a given implementation. The eye-gaze baseduser interest derivation module 216 may utilize information derived fromthe eye-gaze detection module 218 for the information processingactivities described herein to determine user content interests basedupon eye-gaze locations.

A timer/clock module 220 is illustrated and used to determine timing anddate information, such as durations of a user's gaze at locations ofrendered activity stream content on a display such as the display 204,as described above and in more detail below. As such, the eye-gaze baseduser interest derivation module 216 may utilize information derived fromthe timer/clock module 220 for information processing activities, suchas the user eye-gaze based derivation of activity stream processingaugmentations described herein.

The database 112 is again shown within FIG. 2 associated with the coreprocessing module 200. As such, the database 112 may be operativelycoupled to the core processing module 200 without use of networkconnectivity, as appropriate for a given implementation.

The CPU 202, the display 204, the input device 206, the communicationmodule 208, the memory 210, the eye-gaze based user interest derivationmodule 216, the eye-gaze detection module 218, the timer/clock module220, and the database 112 are interconnected via an interconnection 222.The interconnection 222 may include a system bus, a network, or anyother interconnection capable of providing the respective componentswith suitable interconnection for the respective purpose.

Though the different modules illustrated within FIG. 2 are illustratedas component-level modules for ease of illustration and descriptionpurposes, it should be noted that these modules may include anyhardware, programmed processor(s), and memory used to carry out thefunctions of the respective modules as described above and in moredetail below. For example, the modules may include additional controllercircuitry in the form of application specific integrated circuits(ASICs), processors, antennas, and/or discrete integrated circuits andcomponents for performing communication and electrical controlactivities associated with the respective modules. Additionally, themodules may include interrupt-level, stack-level, and application-levelmodules as appropriate. Furthermore, the modules may include any memorycomponents used for storage, execution, and data processing forperforming processing activities associated with the respective modules.The modules may also form a portion of other circuitry described or maybe combined without departure from the scope of the present subjectmatter.

Additionally, while the core processing module 200 is illustrated withand has certain components described, other modules and components maybe associated with the core processing module 200 without departure fromthe scope of the present subject matter. Additionally, it should benoted that, while the core processing module 200 is described as asingle device for ease of illustration purposes, the components withinthe core processing module 200 may be co-located or distributed andinterconnected via a network without departure from the scope of thepresent subject matter. Many other possible arrangements for componentsof the core processing module 200 are possible and all are consideredwithin the scope of the present subject matter. It should also beunderstood that, though the database 112 is illustrated as a separatecomponent for purposes of example, the information stored within thedatabase 112 may also/alternatively be stored within the memory 210without departure from the scope of the present subject matter.Accordingly, the core processing module 200 may take many forms and maybe associated with many platforms.

FIG. 3 through FIG. 4 described below represent example processes thatmay be executed by devices, such as the core processing module 200, toperform the automated user eye-gaze based derivation of activity streamprocessing augmentations associated with the present subject matter.Many other variations on the example processes are possible and all areconsidered within the scope of the present subject matter. The exampleprocesses may be performed by modules, such as the eye-gaze based userinterest derivation module 216 and/or executed by the CPU 202,associated with such devices. It should be noted that time outprocedures and other error control procedures are not illustrated withinthe example processes described below for ease of illustration purposes.However, it is understood that all such procedures are considered to bewithin the scope of the present subject matter. Further, the describedprocesses may be combined, sequences of the processing described may bechanged, and additional processing may be added or removed withoutdeparture from the scope of the present subject matter.

FIG. 3 is a flow chart of an example of an implementation of a process300 for user eye-gaze based derivation of activity stream processingaugmentations. The process 300 represents a computer-implemented methodof performing the subject matter described herein. At block 302, theprocess 300 determines, using eye-gaze analysis of a user viewingexisting activity stream content, a content subject matter area ofinterest to the user according to content at a content location viewedby the user within the existing activity stream content. At block 304,the process 300 configures user-specific activity stream contentaugmentations applicable to new activity stream content viewed by theuser that comprises the content subject matter area of interest to theuser determined from the eye-gaze analysis. At block 306, the process300 augments, using the configured user-specific activity stream contentaugmentations, portions of the new activity stream content viewed by theuser determined to comprise the content subject matter area of interestto the user.

FIG. 4 is a flow chart of an example of an implementation of a process400 for user eye-gaze based derivation of activity stream processingaugmentations that creates and applies a user-specific eye-gaze derivedinterest model. The process 400 represents a computer-implemented methodof performing the subject matter described herein. At decision point402, the process 400 begins higher-level iterative processing anddetermines whether to configure user-specific activity stream contentaugmentations and a user-specific eye-gaze derived interest model. Forexample, the process 400 may detect a user request to configureuser-specific activity stream content augmentations and a user-specificeye-gaze derived interest model. Alternatively, the determination may beperformed responsive to a user browsing activity stream content thatdoes not already have configured user-specific activity stream contentaugmentations and a user-specific eye-gaze derived interest model.Affirmative processing at decision point 402 will be deferred anddescribed in more detail below.

As such, in response to determining not to configure user-specificactivity stream content augmentations and a user-specific eye-gazederived interest model, the process 400 makes a determination atdecision point 404 as to whether to augment an activity stream accordingto configured user-specific activity stream content augmentations and auser-specific eye-gaze derived interest model. Affirmative processing atdecision point 404 will be deferred and described in more detail below.In response to determining not to augment an activity stream accordingto configured user-specific activity stream content augmentations and auser-specific eye-gaze derived interest model, the process 400 returnsto decision point 402 and iterates as described above to complete thehigher-level iterative processing.

Returning to the description of decision point 402, in response todetermining to configure user-specific activity stream contentaugmentations and a user-specific eye-gaze derived interest model, theprocess 400 monitors the user's eye movement using eye-gaze recognitiontechnology while the user views existing activity stream content atblock 406. At block 408, the process 400 determines, according toeye-gaze analysis of the user, durations of viewing associated withdifferent content locations and with one or more specific areas of adisplay screen of rendered content within the existing activity streamcontent. At block 410, the process 400 identifies one or more portionsof the rendered content located at one or more specific areas of thedisplay screen. At block 412, the process 400 analyzes the portion(s) ofthe rendered content. The analysis may include text analysis, imageanalysis, or other forms of analysis as appropriate for the particularform of activity stream content. At block 414, the process 400identifies one or more content subject matter areas of interest to theuser from the analyzed portion(s) of the rendered content according tocontent at the location(s) within the existing activity stream contentviewed by the user for a longest duration of time. For example, theprocess 400 may identify time spent reviewing portions of the existingactivity stream and frequencies of different terms, and other processingas appropriate for a given implementation.

At block 416, the process 400 configures a user-specific eye-gazederived interest model. The user-specific eye-gaze derived interestmodel may be configured within a memory, such as the memory 210, and mayinclude one or more user-specific content filters configured withhigh-frequency word-count terms identified to be of interest to theuser. The configured user-specific eye-gaze derived interest model mayinclude the content subject matter area of interest to the userdetermined from the eye-gaze analysis. The user-specific eye-gazederived interest model may further include configured content appearancechanges that differentiate content that matches the content subjectmatter area of interest to the user from surrounding content within thenew activity stream content and that attract the user's attention to thecontent that matches the subject matter area of interest to the userwhile viewing the new activity stream content. The configured contentappearance changes may include increased font size, a bolded font, adifferent font, an italicized font, a different font color, ahighlighting, a reverse highlighting, and an underlining, and othercontent appearance changes as appropriate for a given implementation.The process 400 returns to decision point 402 and iterates as describedabove.

Returning to the description of decision point 404, in response todetermining to augment an activity stream according to configureduser-specific activity stream content augmentations and a user-specificeye-gaze derived interest model, the process 400 retrieves a configureduser-specific eye-gaze derived interest model associated with thespecific user that is viewing new activity stream content, and beginsprocessing the new activity stream content at block 418. At block 420,the process 400 filters the new activity stream content using auser-specific content filter configured within the user-specificeye-gaze derived interest model. At block 422, the process 400determines one or more portion(s) of the new activity stream contentthat include information related to the subject matter area of interestto the user. At block 424, the process 400 augments the one or moreportions of the new activity stream content determined to include theinformation related to the subject matter area of interest to the user.The augmentation of the portions of the new activity stream content mayinclude augmenting the filtered activity stream content with contentaccents that attract the user's attention to the augmented filteredactivity stream content. The accents may include applying at least onetext augmentation to portions of the new activity stream content thatmatch the subject matter area of interest to the user selected from agroup of text augmentations of increased font size, a bolded font, adifferent font, an italicized font, a different font color, ahighlighting, a reverse highlighting, and an underlining. Theaugmentation of the portions of the new activity stream content mayfurther include prioritizing a display location of one or more of theportions of the new activity stream content determined to include theinformation related to the subject matter area of interest to the userto relative to display locations of other portions of the new activitystream content. It should be understood that the filtering, analysis,and augmentation of new activity stream content may continue throughouta user's browsing session, and the process 400 is considered to performthis additional iterative processing, though this iterative processingis understood from the description above and is not additionallydepicted to avoid crowding within the drawing figure. When the user'sbrowsing session concludes, the process 400 returns to decision point402 and iterates as described above.

As such, the process 400 operates to configure a user-specific eye-gazederived interest model based upon activity stream content interests of auser derived based upon eye-gaze analysis of the user's viewing ofexisting activity stream content. The process 400 further operates toprocess new activity streams according to the configured user-specificeye-gaze derived interest model.

As described above in association with FIG. 1 through FIG. 4, theexample systems and processes provide user eye-gaze based derivation ofactivity stream processing augmentations. Many other variations andadditional activities associated with user eye-gaze based derivation ofactivity stream processing augmentations are possible and all areconsidered within the scope of the present subject matter.

The present invention may be a system, a method, and/or a computerprogram product. The computer program product may include a computerreadable storage medium (or media) having computer readable programinstructions thereon for causing a processor to carry out aspects of thepresent invention.

The computer readable storage medium can be a tangible device that canretain and store instructions for use by an instruction executiondevice. The computer readable storage medium may be, for example, but isnot limited to, an electronic storage device, a magnetic storage device,an optical storage device, an electromagnetic storage device, asemiconductor storage device, or any suitable combination of theforegoing. A non-exhaustive list of more specific examples of thecomputer readable storage medium includes the following: a portablecomputer diskette, a hard disk, a random access memory (RAM), aread-only memory (ROM), an erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROMor Flash memory), a static random access memory (SRAM), a portablecompact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM), a digital versatile disk (DVD),a memory stick, a floppy disk, a mechanically encoded device such aspunch-cards or raised structures in a groove having instructionsrecorded thereon, and any suitable combination of the foregoing. Acomputer readable storage medium, as used herein, is not to be construedas being transitory signals per se, such as radio waves or other freelypropagating electromagnetic waves, electromagnetic waves propagatingthrough a waveguide or other transmission media (e.g., light pulsespassing through a fiber-optic cable), or electrical signals transmittedthrough a wire.

Computer readable program instructions described herein can bedownloaded to respective computing/processing devices from a computerreadable storage medium or to an external computer or external storagedevice via a network, for example, the Internet, a local area network, awide area network and/or a wireless network. The network may comprisecopper transmission cables, optical transmission fibers, wirelesstransmission, routers, firewalls, switches, gateway computers and/oredge servers. A network adapter card or network interface in eachcomputing/processing device receives computer readable programinstructions from the network and forwards the computer readable programinstructions for storage in a computer readable storage medium withinthe respective computing/processing device.

Computer readable program instructions for carrying out operations ofthe present invention may be assembler instructions,instruction-set-architecture (ISA) instructions, machine instructions,machine dependent instructions, microcode, firmware instructions,state-setting data, or either source code or object code written in anycombination of one or more programming languages, including an objectoriented programming language such as Smalltalk, C++ or the like, andconventional procedural programming languages, such as the “C”programming language or similar programming languages. The computerreadable program instructions may execute entirely on the user'scomputer, partly on the user's computer, as a stand-alone softwarepackage, partly on the user's computer and partly on a remote computeror entirely on the remote computer or server. In the latter scenario,the remote computer may be connected to the user's computer through anytype of network, including a local area network (LAN) or a wide areanetwork (WAN), or the connection may be made to an external computer(for example, through the Internet using an Internet Service Provider).In some embodiments, electronic circuitry including, for example,programmable logic circuitry, field-programmable gate arrays (FPGA), orprogrammable logic arrays (PLA) may execute the computer readableprogram instructions by utilizing state information of the computerreadable program instructions to personalize the electronic circuitry,in order to perform aspects of the present invention.

Aspects of the present invention are described herein with reference toflowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams of methods, apparatus(systems), and computer program products according to embodiments of theinvention. It will be understood that each block of the flowchartillustrations and/or block diagrams, and combinations of blocks in theflowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams, can be implemented bycomputer readable program instructions.

These computer readable program instructions may be provided to aprocessor of a general purpose computer, special purpose computer, orother programmable data processing apparatus to produce a machine, suchthat the instructions, which execute via the processor of the computeror other programmable data processing apparatus, create means forimplementing the functions/acts specified in the flowchart and/or blockdiagram block or blocks. These computer readable program instructionsmay also be stored in a computer readable storage medium that can directa computer, a programmable data processing apparatus, and/or otherdevices to function in a particular manner, such that the computerreadable storage medium having instructions stored therein comprises anarticle of manufacture including instructions which implement aspects ofthe function/act specified in the flowchart and/or block diagram blockor blocks.

The computer readable program instructions may also be loaded onto acomputer, other programmable data processing apparatus, or other deviceto cause a series of operational steps to be performed on the computer,other programmable apparatus or other device to produce a computerimplemented process, such that the instructions which execute on thecomputer, other programmable apparatus, or other device implement thefunctions/acts specified in the flowchart and/or block diagram block orblocks.

The flowchart and block diagrams in the Figures illustrate thearchitecture, functionality, and operation of possible implementationsof systems, methods, and computer program products according to variousembodiments of the present invention. In this regard, each block in theflowchart or block diagrams may represent a module, segment, or portionof instructions, which comprises one or more executable instructions forimplementing the specified logical function(s). In some alternativeimplementations, the functions noted in the block may occur out of theorder noted in the figures. For example, two blocks shown in successionmay, in fact, be executed substantially concurrently, or the blocks maysometimes be executed in the reverse order, depending upon thefunctionality involved. It will also be noted that each block of theblock diagrams and/or flowchart illustration, and combinations of blocksin the block diagrams and/or flowchart illustration, can be implementedby special purpose hardware-based systems that perform the specifiedfunctions or acts or carry out combinations of special purpose hardwareand computer instructions.

The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particularembodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of the invention. Asused herein, the singular forms “a,” “an” and “the” are intended toinclude the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicatesotherwise. It will be further understood that the terms “comprises”and/or “comprising,” when used in this specification, specify thepresence of stated features, integers, steps, operations, elements,and/or components, but do not preclude the presence or addition of oneor more other features, integers, steps, operations, elements,components, and/or groups thereof.

The corresponding structures, materials, acts, and equivalents of allmeans or step plus function elements in the claims below are intended toinclude any structure, material, or act for performing the function incombination with other claimed elements as specifically claimed. Thedescription of the present invention has been presented for purposes ofillustration and description, but is not intended to be exhaustive orlimited to the invention in the form disclosed. Many modifications andvariations will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art basedupon the teachings herein without departing from the scope and spirit ofthe invention. The subject matter was described to explain theprinciples of the invention and the practical application, and to enableothers of ordinary skill in the art to understand the invention forvarious embodiments with various modifications as are suited to theparticular use contemplated.

What is claimed is:
 1. A computer-implemented method, comprising:determining, using eye-gaze analysis of a user viewing existing activitystream content, a content subject matter area of interest to the useraccording to content at a content location viewed by the user within theexisting activity stream content; configuring user-specific activitystream content augmentations applicable to new activity stream contentviewed by the user that comprises the content subject matter area ofinterest to the user determined from the eye-gaze analysis; andaugmenting, using the configured user-specific activity stream contentaugmentations, portions of the new activity stream content viewed by theuser determined to comprise the content subject matter area of interestto the user.
 2. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wheredetermining, using the eye-gaze analysis of the user viewing theexisting activity stream content, the content subject matter area ofinterest to the user according to the content at the content locationviewed by the user within the existing activity stream contentcomprises: monitoring the user's eye movements using eye-gazerecognition technology while the user views the existing activity streamcontent; determining, using the monitored eye movements, durations ofviewing by the user associated with different content locations withinthe existing activity stream content; and identifying the contentsubject matter area of interest to the user according to content at alocation within the existing activity stream content viewed by the userfor a longest duration of time.
 3. The computer-implemented method ofclaim 1, where determining, using the eye-gaze analysis of the userviewing the existing activity stream content, the content subject matterarea of interest to the user according to the content at the contentlocation viewed by the user within the existing activity stream contentcomprises: determining, using the eye-gaze analysis, a duration of agaze of the user at a specific area of a display screen of renderedcontent; identifying a portion of the rendered content located at thespecific area of the display screen; analyzing the portion of therendered content; and identifying the content subject matter area ofinterest to the user from the analyzed portion of the rendered content.4. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, where configuring theuser-specific activity stream content augmentations applicable to thenew activity stream content viewed by the user that comprises thecontent subject matter area of interest to the user determined from theeye-gaze analysis comprises: configuring a user-specific eye-gazederived interest model that comprises: the content subject matter areaof interest to the user determined from the eye-gaze analysis; andconfigured content appearance changes that differentiate content thatmatches the content subject matter area of interest to the user fromsurrounding content within the new activity stream content and thatattract attention of the user to the content that matches the contentsubject matter area of interest to the user while viewing the newactivity stream content.
 5. The computer-implemented method of claim 1,where augmenting, using the configured user-specific activity streamcontent augmentations, the portions of the new activity stream contentviewed by the user determined to comprise the content subject matterarea of interest to the user comprises: filtering the portions of thenew activity stream content using a user-specific content filterconfigured within a user-specific eye-gaze derived interest model; andaugmenting the filtered portions of the new activity stream content withcontent accents that attract attention of the user to the augmentedfiltered portions of the new activity stream content.
 6. Thecomputer-implemented method of claim 1, where augmenting, using theconfigured user-specific activity stream content augmentations, theportions of the new activity stream content viewed by the userdetermined to comprise the content subject matter area of interest tothe user comprises: determining that at least one portion of the newactivity stream content comprises information related to the subjectmatter area of interest to the user; and prioritizing a display locationof the at least one portion of the new activity stream contentdetermined to comprise the information related to the subject matterarea of interest to the user relative to display locations of otherportions of the new activity stream content.
 7. The computer-implementedmethod of claim 1, where augmenting, using the configured user-specificactivity stream content augmentations, the portions of the new activitystream content viewed by the user determined to comprise the contentsubject matter area of interest to the user comprises: applying at leastone text augmentation to the portions of the new activity stream contentthat match the content subject matter area of interest to the userselected from a group consisting of an increased font size, a boldedfont, a different font, an italicized font, a different font color, ahighlighting, a reverse highlighting, and an underlining.
 8. A system,comprising: a memory; and a processor programmed to: determine, usingeye-gaze analysis of a user viewing existing activity stream content, acontent subject matter area of interest to the user according to contentat a content location viewed by the user within the existing activitystream content; configure, within the memory, user-specific activitystream content augmentations applicable to new activity stream contentviewed by the user that comprises the content subject matter area ofinterest to the user determined from the eye-gaze analysis; and augment,using the configured user-specific activity stream contentaugmentations, portions of the new activity stream content viewed by theuser determined to comprise the content subject matter area of interestto the user.
 9. The system of claim 8, where, in being programmed todetermine, using the eye-gaze analysis of the user viewing the existingactivity stream content, the content subject matter area of interest tothe user according to the content at the content location viewed by theuser within the existing activity stream content, the processor isprogrammed to: monitor the user's eye movements using eye-gazerecognition technology while the user views the existing activity streamcontent; determine, using the monitored eye movements, durations ofviewing by the user associated with different content locations withinthe existing activity stream content; and identify the content subjectmatter area of interest to the user according to content at a locationwithin the existing activity stream content viewed by the user for alongest duration of time.
 10. The system of claim 8, where, in beingprogrammed to determine, using the eye-gaze analysis of the user viewingthe existing activity stream content, the content subject matter area ofinterest to the user according to the content at the content locationviewed by the user within the existing activity stream content, theprocessor is programmed to: determine, using the eye-gaze analysis, aduration of a gaze of the user at a specific area of a display screen ofrendered content; identify a portion of the rendered content located atthe specific area of the display screen; analyze the portion of therendered content; and identify the content subject matter area ofinterest to the user from the analyzed portion of the rendered content.11. The system of claim 8, where, in being programmed to configure,within the memory, the user-specific activity stream contentaugmentations applicable to the new activity stream content viewed bythe user that comprises the content subject matter area of interest tothe user determined from the eye-gaze analysis, the processor isprogrammed to: configure, within the memory, a user-specific eye-gazederived interest model that comprises: the content subject matter areaof interest to the user determined from the eye-gaze analysis; andconfigured content appearance changes that differentiate content thatmatches the content subject matter area of interest to the user fromsurrounding content within the new activity stream content and thatattract attention of the user to the content that matches the contentsubject matter area of interest to the user while viewing the newactivity stream content.
 12. The system of claim 8, where, in beingprogrammed to augment, using the configured user-specific activitystream content augmentations, the portions of the new activity streamcontent viewed by the user determined to comprise the content subjectmatter area of interest to the user, the processor is programmed to oneof: filter the portions of the new activity stream content using auser-specific content filter configured within a user-specific eye-gazederived interest model and augment the filtered portions of the newactivity stream content with content accents that attract attention ofthe user to the augmented filtered portions of the new activity streamcontent; and determine that at least one portion of the new activitystream content comprises information related to the subject matter areaof interest to the user and prioritize a display location of the atleast one portion of the new activity stream content determined tocomprise the information related to the subject matter area of interestto the user relative to display locations of other portions of the newactivity stream content.
 13. The system of claim 8, where, in beingprogrammed to augment, using the configured user-specific activitystream content augmentations, the portions of the new activity streamcontent viewed by the user determined to comprise the content subjectmatter area of interest to the user, the processor is programmed to:apply at least one text augmentation to the portions of the new activitystream content that match the content subject matter area of interest tothe user selected from a group consisting of an increased font size, abolded font, a different font, an italicized font, a different fontcolor, a highlighting, a reverse highlighting, and an underlining.
 14. Acomputer program product, comprising: a computer readable storage mediumhaving computer readable program code embodied therewith, where thecomputer readable storage medium is not a transitory signal per se andwhere the computer readable program code when executed on a computercauses the computer to: determine, using eye-gaze analysis of a userviewing existing activity stream content, a content subject matter areaof interest to the user according to content at a content locationviewed by the user within the existing activity stream content;configure user-specific activity stream content augmentations applicableto new activity stream content viewed by the user that comprises thecontent subject matter area of interest to the user determined from theeye-gaze analysis; and augment, using the configured user-specificactivity stream content augmentations, portions of the new activitystream content viewed by the user determined to comprise the contentsubject matter area of interest to the user.
 15. The computer programproduct of claim 14, where, in causing the computer to determine, usingthe eye-gaze analysis of the user viewing the existing activity streamcontent, the content subject matter area of interest to the useraccording to the content at the content location viewed by the userwithin the existing activity stream content, the computer readableprogram code when executed on the computer causes the computer to:monitor the user's eye movements using eye-gaze recognition technologywhile the user views the existing activity stream content; determine,using the monitored eye movements, durations of viewing by the userassociated with different content locations within the existing activitystream content; and identify the content subject matter area of interestto the user according to content at a location within the existingactivity stream content viewed by the user for a longest duration oftime.
 16. The computer program product of claim 14, where, in causingthe computer to determine, using the eye-gaze analysis of the userviewing the existing activity stream content, the content subject matterarea of interest to the user according to the content at the contentlocation viewed by the user within the existing activity stream content,the computer readable program code when executed on the computer causesthe computer to: determine, using the eye-gaze analysis, a duration of agaze of the user at a specific area of a display screen of renderedcontent; identify a portion of the rendered content located at thespecific area of the display screen; analyze the portion of the renderedcontent; and identify the content subject matter area of interest to theuser from the analyzed portion of the rendered content.
 17. The computerprogram product of claim 14, where, in causing the computer to configurethe user-specific activity stream content augmentations applicable tothe new activity stream content viewed by the user that comprises thecontent subject matter area of interest to the user determined from theeye-gaze analysis, the computer readable program code when executed onthe computer causes the computer to: configure a user-specific eye-gazederived interest model that comprises: the content subject matter areaof interest to the user determined from the eye-gaze analysis; andconfigured content appearance changes that differentiate content thatmatches the content subject matter area of interest to the user fromsurrounding content within the new activity stream content and thatattract attention of the user to the content that matches the contentsubject matter area of interest to the user while viewing the newactivity stream content.
 18. The computer program product of claim 14,where, in causing the computer to augment, using the configureduser-specific activity stream content augmentations, the portions of thenew activity stream content viewed by the user determined to comprisethe content subject matter area of interest to the user, the computerreadable program code when executed on the computer causes the computerto: filter the portions of the new activity stream content using auser-specific content filter configured within a user-specific eye-gazederived interest model; and augment the filtered portions of the newactivity stream content with content accents that attract attention ofthe user to the augmented filtered portions of the new activity streamcontent.
 19. The computer program product of claim 14, where, in causingthe computer to augment, using the configured user-specific activitystream content augmentations, the portions of the new activity streamcontent viewed by the user determined to comprise the content subjectmatter area of interest to the user, the computer readable program codewhen executed on the computer causes the computer to: determine that atleast one portion of the new activity stream content comprisesinformation related to the subject matter area of interest to the user;and prioritize a display location of the at least one portion of the newactivity stream content determined to comprise the information relatedto the subject matter area of interest to the user relative to displaylocations of other portions of the new activity stream content.
 20. Thecomputer program product of claim 14, where, in causing the computer toaugment, using the configured user-specific activity stream contentaugmentations, the portions of the new activity stream content viewed bythe user determined to comprise the content subject matter area ofinterest to the user, the computer readable program code when executedon the computer causes the computer to: apply at least one textaugmentation to the portions of the new activity stream content thatmatch the content subject matter area of interest to the user selectedfrom a group consisting of an increased font size, a bolded font, adifferent font, an italicized font, a different font color, ahighlighting, a reverse highlighting, and an underlining.